Cooper's 'coming out' supported by fans, celebs

ABS-CBN News

MANILA, Philippines - CNN anchor Anderson Cooper took to Twitter on Tuesday to thank his fans for their support after admitting that he is gay in an e-mail to blogger Andrew Sullivan.

"I appreciate all the nice tweets. I am in Botswana working but want to wish everyone a great 4th of July!" he said in his Twitter account.

Cooper publicly admitted he is gay in an e-mail to The Daily Beast. He said he did not want to give the impression he was hiding something and wanted to stand up against bullying.

"The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn't be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud," the 45-year-old anchor of CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" said.

Cooper said he had not disclosed his sexual orientation in a memoir he wrote several years ago as that was focused on war, but he had come to realize he did not want to give "the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something".

"There continue to be far too many incidences of bullying of young people, as well as discrimination and violence against people of all ages, based on their sexual orientation, and I believe there is value in making clear where I stand," he said.

Meanwhile, comedian Joan Rivers said she was happy that Cooper has finally come out of the closet.

"I am thrilled that Anderson Cooper finally came out, because this explains why he never tried to date me. I saw him as the perfect package," she said in a Huffington Post article.

"I would have loved Gloria Vanderbilt as a mother-in-law. This explains everything."

Celebs support Cooper

Other celebrities turned to Twitter to express their support for Cooper.

Below are some of their tweets:

Ellen Degeneres: "I'm proud of you, @AndersonCooper."

KellyRipa: "So proud of you @andersoncooper . Always have been, always will be."

PerezHilton: "Woo hoo! @andersoncooper has just officially come out of the closet as a gay man!"